Photo Credit: Elliott Simpson / CC BY-SA 2.0

Rupert Bear is one of the best-loved and most enduring characters in children's literature. Created by the English artist, Mary Tourtel, he started out as a comic strip character in the Daily Express newspaper on 8th November 1920. Originally, Rupert was a brown bear, whose first adventure was called "Little Lost Bear". Mary drew the comic strip and her husband, Herbert, wrote a short story underneath. Bosses at the Daily Express wanted a cartoon to rival Pip, Squeak and Wilfred in the Daily Mirror and Teddy Tail in the Daily Mail. New look Over time, Rupert was given a new look and became his familiar white colour, with the addition of his famous red jumper and yellow plaid trousers following soon afterwards. Sadly, Herbert died in 1931 and Mary began to suffer from ill health four years later, but their legacy of Rupert Bear lived on. Alfred Bestall, a first world war veteran and a former illustrator for Punch magazine, took over the role of creating the artwork and stories for the Rupert cartoons. He was a wonderful storyteller and continued writing until well into his 90s. The cartoon strip continues in the Daily Express to this day, with the current illustrator being Stuart Trotter, who took over the role in 2008. Many books telling the tales of Rupert Bear have been published, with around 50 million copies being sold worldwide. TV series In addition, Rupert was given his first television series in 1970 on ITV, which continued for more than 100 ten-minute episodes. Children everywhere would join in the familiar Rupert the Bear title song, sung by Jackie Lee, before enjoying his latest adventures. The animated series revolved around Rupert and his pals, who were other anthropomorphic animals. They lived in the fictional English hamlet of Nutwood, where Rupert lived in an idyllic house with his parents. His friends (usually referred to as his "chums") included Billy Badger, Willie the Mouse, Podgy Pig, Pong-Ping the Pekingese and the twins, Freddie and Ferdy Fox. There were a few human characters in the stories, such as a young girl called Tiger Lily and her father, The Conjuror. The stories had a familiar format, often beginning with Rupert setting off to visit a friend, or to complete an errand for his mother. However, his journey would usually develop into a magical adventure in a faraway land, including the Kingdom of the Birds, or King Frost's Castle. At the end of each adventure, Rupert would return home safe and sound to Nutwood, where his parents had no idea about his mystical adventures. Village life would then continue as usual. The Adventures of Rupert Bear continued on TV until 1977. Animated film In 1984, an animated film, Rupert and the Frog Song, was released. It was written and produced by former Beatle Paul McCartney, who had begun his Rupert Bear project in earnest in 1981, although his company, McCartney Productions Ltd, had acquired the rights to the film in the 1970s. The short film was an accompaniment in cinemas to McCartney's feature film, Give My Regards to Broad Street. The plot revolves around another of Rupert's fantastic adventures, this time when he sets off for a walk in the hills. On the way, he stops to rest against the trunk of a large oak tree, when he sees a cloud of rainbow-coloured butterflies. Fascinated, he follows them to the rocks, where he finds lots of multi-coloured frogs. He then finds a secret cave behind a waterfall and a sign that says, "Frogs only," but he's unable to resist sneaking in to find out what's happening. To his amazement, he witnesses hundreds of frogs, of all shapes and sizes, coming together to sing We All Stand Together, otherwise known as The Frog Chorus - a magical event that happens only once in hundreds of years! The singing is led by the frog king and queen, who rise up out of the water to finish off the song. Rupert is unaware that an owl has followed him into the cave and suddenly, it tries to attack the frogs, but Rupert manages to warn them and they all escape in the nick of time. Awards In the film, McCartney provided the voices of Rupert and Bill the Badger, while actress June Whitfield was the voice of Rupert's mother and Windsor Davies (star of the sitcom, It Ain't Half Hot, Mum) provided the voices of Rupert's father and his other pal, Edward the Elephant. The film won a BAFTA award for Best Animated Short Film in 1984. The soundtrack song, We All Stand Together, was released as a single and peaked at number three in the UK singles chart. The video of the song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video for a Short Film in 1986. Rupert and the Frog Song was re-released on DVD in September 2004 to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Later, McCartney revealed his inspiration for the song stemmed from his own childhood love of Rupert Bear, who was also a favourite among his own children. He said he had found his old Rupert Bear Christmas annuals and wrote the song. If your children enjoy plenty of outdoor adventures like Rupert Bear, make sure they have suitable attire to keep them snug and warm. Griggs' range of boys' clothing and girls' clothing will ensure your little adventurers can enjoy the great outdoors in comfort and style!